A process of forming color images by processing a silver halide color photographic material after imagewise exposure with a color developer containing an aromatic primary amino developing agent is well known.
It is also well known that in such a color image-forming process, the above-described developing agent is oxidized by oxygen in the air and the oxidation product of the developing agent forms colored fog by reacting with color couplers at the unexposed portions or little-exposed portions of a photographic light-sensitive material to form dyes.
Also, it is known that in an ordinary color photographic light-sensitive material having two or more silver halide emulsion layers each containing a color coupler having a different color sensitivity and showing a different colored hue, the oxidation product of a color developing agent formed in one color-sensitive emulsion layer by development diffuses into other color-sensitive emulsion layer(s) to cause color stain (color mixing) by reacting with coupler(s).
As one means for preventing the formation of such undesirable color fog and color stain, it has been proposed to use hydroquinone compounds.
For example, there are methods of using mono-n-alkylhydroquinones described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,360,290, 2,419,613, 2,403,721, 3,960,570, etc., the methods of using mono-branched alkylhydroquinones described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,700,453, Japanese Patent Application (OPI) Nos. 106,329/74, 156,438/75 (the term "OPI" as used herein means an "unexamined published Japanese patent application"), West German Patent Application (OLS) No. 2,149,789; the means of using dialkyl-substituted hydroquinones described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,738,659, 2,732,300, 3,243,294, 3,700,453, British Pat. No. 752,146, Japanese Patent Application (OPI) Nos. 156,438/75, 9528/78, 29,637/79, Japanese Patent Publication No. 21,249/75, etc.; and the methods of using arylhydroquinones described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,418,613, etc.
These compounds which are used in the above-described methods may certainly have an effect of preventing the formation of color fog and color stain to some extent, but the effect is not so remarkable and there is a problem in these methods that colored materials are formed after exhibiting the prevention effect.
The use of a hydroquinone nucleus-substituted by an electron attractive group such as an acyl group, a nitro group, a cyano group, a formyl group, a halogenated alkyl group, etc., is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,198,239. The aforesaid compound is certainly excellent in the function of preventing the formation of color stain, but the use of such a compound is accompanied by the problems that colored matter is formed, the effect of the compound is reduced during the production and storage of the photographic light-sensitive materials, and silver halide emulsions are fogged by the action of the compound.
Also, the use of hydroquinones substituted by an aliphatic acylamino group, a ureido group a urethane group, etc., is proposed by U.S. Pat. No. 4,198,239. These compounds certainly show a high faculty of preventing the formation of color stain to some extent and cause less coloring but the function of preventing color stain is still insufficient. Furthermore, these hydroquinones have a problem with respect to storage stability in that they sometimes deposit crystals during the production of light-sensitive materials.
Also, the use of hydroquinones substituted by an alkyl group, aralkyl group, or acylamino group each having a sulfonic acid group is proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,701,197 but these compounds have disadvantages such as that the compound diffuses into other photographic layers containing no such compound from the photographic layer containing it during the production and storage of the light-sensitive material, to reduce the function thereof for preventing the formation of color stain and color fog in the photographic layer containing the compound as well as to change the photographic performance of other photographic layers during the production and storage of the light-sensitive material.
Also, the use of hydroquinones substituted by a sulfonamido group is described in Japanese Patent Application (OPI) No. 202,465/84, but the function of preventing the formation of color stain is still insufficient.
Also, the use of hydroquinones having an electron attractive group, for example, hydroquinones substituted by a carbamoyl group, has been described in Japanese Patent Application (OPI) No. 22,237/82, but in the case of using these compounds, there are problems in that the compound is liable to be oxidized during the production and storage of the light-sensitive compound containing it to change the photographic performance thereof, and also coloring of the oxidized compound is severe.
Furthermore, the use of other hydroquinones having some similarity to the compounds for use in the present invention is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,930,866, 4,277,558, Japanese Patent Publication No. 7578/80, etc. There are no explicit practical description about the compounds for use in this invention in U.S. Pat. No. 3,930,866. U.S. Pat. No. 4,277,558 teaches the use of hydroquinone together with quinone but if the compound of this invention as set forth herein below is used in such a manner as described above, the function of preventing color stain is rather reduced; also, the compounds for use in this invention are not explicitly illustrated in the U.S. patent.
Japanese Patent Publication No. 7578/80 relates to a compound wherein a hydroquinone residue and a coupler residue are contained in the same molecule. This compound forms a color image by coupling reaction upon developing process. Such a property is not admitted for preventing color stain and color fog, which are the object of the present invention.